


Flowers On Our Hands

by wolfish_willow



Series: NaNoWriMo 2020 [5]
Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, Multi, POV Nancy Wheeler, POV Third Person, Post-Season/Series 03, Romance, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Wedding Rings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:07:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,361
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28282914
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wolfish_willow/pseuds/wolfish_willow
Summary: Trying to find the perfect rings to exchange before they make it back home.
Relationships: Jonathan Byers/Steve Harrington/Nancy Wheeler
Series: NaNoWriMo 2020 [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2042158
Comments: 2
Kudos: 31





	Flowers On Our Hands

**Author's Note:**

> Pretty much a direction continuation of my big bang fic.
> 
> The fifth (and penultimate) of my NaNo fics! 
> 
> Not beta'd. Feel free to point out any typos I've missed! I hope you enjoy this little fic :)

Nancy looks up at the third, and hopefully last, jewelry store they've stopped at. It isn't late but she's already tired despite not having a turn to drive yet. She desperately wants to find their rings—the _right_ rings—before they get back to Hawkins. The problem is that she doesn't know what the right rings look like. 

As Steve has reminded both of them with each stop, they can afford just about anything they want. She can't deny that it's nice not to have to worry about the cost. Still, all three of them want to steer clear of anything too traditional. There is no way her mother won't notice if she comes home wearing a diamond set ring, even if it _is_ joining the other ring she wears on her right hand.

The first two stores didn't have any non-traditional options that appealed to her or Jonathan. Steve is easier to please, eager to exchange rings as soon as he can. More than anything, though, he wants them to have what _they_ want. She's sure he plans to take every exit that looks like it might lead to a town large enough for a ring shop or two for them to check if he has to. It's endearing but Nancy hopes it doesn't come to that.

The outside of the shop is nothing special; dark brown walls to match the stores attached at either side. The jewelry on display in the window shines in the late morning light. She pauses to look at them but nothing catches her eye right away. 

Arms wrap around her waist from behind. She smiles, leaning into Jonathan's chest.

"Anything?"

"No," she says, shaking her head. "But we haven't seen what's inside yet."

"This place'll be different," Steve says after locking up the car. Giving his keys a quick toss in the air, he catches them and grins. "Our rings are in here somewhere."

"You said that about the last place," Jonathan says, resting his cheek against Nancy's. He turns to look at Steve and she goes with the motion. Steve rolls his eyes.

"I _did_ find our rings at the last place." He points at Jonathan, and she knows even without looking that he's rolling his eyes. "It's not my fault you guys are so picky."

It's hard to take him seriously when he can't keep a straight face or add any heat to his voice. She knows what he sounds like when he's annoyed and trying to hide it. Steve would be happy with just about any ring if it means they have something solid to hold onto, to remember what they've promised each other. But he's willing to stop at as many stores as it takes to find the set that will make all _three_ of them happy.

A bell over the door chimes as they enter and the person—a woman around Nancy's mom's age with wavy blonde hair pulled up in a ponytail—behind the counter smiles. Her smile falters when she gets a longer look at them. Nancy isn't surprised. At their first stop, the man behind the counter had taken one look at how young the three of them are and decided they weren't even worth a customer service smile. Nancy could have found the perfect set of rings in that place and would have been happy to leave without them if it meant keeping him from earning any sort of commission off of them.

The employee greets them cheerfully enough, though Nancy is sure she thinks they won't be able to afford most of what they have for sale here. Given how young they look—how young they _are_ —Nancy doesn't blame her. Nancy does appreciate the way this woman doesn't turn her nose up at them. She's already done better at treating them like real customers than everyone they've met today.

With the size of the building—smaller than the last two—Nancy is surprised to find a wider selection of rings. There are more than just diamond engagement rings and plain gold or silver bands. She squeezes Jonathan's arm when they stop in front of one of the cases. The corners of his eyes crinkle.

"Wow," Steve says from her other side. He leans over the case so close his breath fogs the glass. Nancy pokes him in the side until he looks up at her. Crooked smile on his face, he straightens up with a not at all sorry sounding, "Sorry," before crouching to see them better instead. She shakes her head but lets him be now that his nose isn't practically pressed to the case.

"Oh."

Nancy tries to find whichever ring made Jonathan sound like _that_. Before she does, he calls the employee over.

"Excuse me," he says, pointing without touching the glass when she reaches them. "Could we get a closer look at these?"

Nancy exchanges a look with Steve as he stands from his crouch. This is the first time all day Jonathan has found anything he likes. He thought a couple of Steve's picks were nice, but not enough to be comfortable with the money Steve would be spending. It's doesn't help that it's hard to find something matching enough for all of them while trying not to look too much like what they are.

The tray that the woman—Julie according to her nametag—slides out has four rows of gold and silver rings. Nancy holds Jonathan's arm tighter when they are set down on top of the case.

"Wow," she says when she sees one in particular. It's rose gold, thinner and more delicate than some of the others. The color isn't what has captured her attention, though. The band, made to look like a ring of flowers, does. With a shaky hand, she points to it. "Could I try this one, please?"

Steve wraps an arm around her, taking a closer look at it. He's quiet until it's sitting on her finger.

"That's it, Nance," he breathes and when she looks at him, he seems transfixed by the sight. She turns to Jonathan, holding her hand up so he can get a good look.

"What do you think?" she asks, but the soft smile on his face answers for him.

"It's perfect," he says, catching her hand in his and rubbing his thumb just under the band. "I love it."

"Me, too." Nancy squeezes Jonathan's hand before taking hers back. She slides the ring off and sets it gently down on the case, smiling at Julie. Julie picks it up but doesn't put it back with the others yet. "What about you guys?"

"This is the one that stuck out to me," Jonathan says, pointing at a wider ring, its band also made to look like a ring of flowers. It's darker, more copper than gold. The coloring is so different from the rest that Nancy is surprised she didn't notice it before.

He tries it on. It's a little loose and doesn't sit quite right on his finger, but it's perfect.

Nancy bites her lip. They hadn't gotten far enough in the other shops to worry about sizes. Julie seems to know what she's thinking. Or she just noticed the way the ring wobbles when Jonathan moves his hand. She tells them that resizing should only take a couple hours. Nancy exchanges looks with her boys. When they got here she was tired and ready to get home. Finding a ring— _her_ ring—has reinvigorated her.

"We could find somewhere to have lunch," she suggests, happy to stick around a couple hours more if it means going home with the perfect rings. "Steve?"

She doesn't have to finish her question. Steve grins at her before pointing to one sitting next to the empty space where Jonathan's ring sat. It's similar to the one Jonathan picked but wider and in silver instead. He slides it on easily. The silver looks good against his skin.

"We'll take them," he tells Julie as he hands the ring back for her to set with the others. "How long will the resizing take? We've got a bit of a drive before we get home."

Nancy doesn't know whether it's the amount of money they're spending at one—there are no price tags anywhere, but even without gems she doesn't expect them to be cheap—or if the resizing they need it normally done so quickly. Whatever the reason, they have time to find a restaurant and have lunch while they wait. She sits beside Jonathan, boxing one of Steve's feet in between theirs under the table. The food is good, the company is better, but all she wants is for time to speed up.

After they've eaten, they walk around the little shopping center they've found themselves in. Steve leads the way inside a few stores and finds more trinkets for the kids that they absolutely do not need. By the time the ring should be done, Steve's got two more bags to fit into the car when they leave.

All the walking has been good for focusing Nancy's nervous energy into movement. As they reenter the jewelry store, she's able to keep from bouncing in place while she waits for Julie to bring their, now perfectly fitted, rings out. When Jonathan slides his on, he looks happier than she's seen him all day.

He takes it back off and lets Julie place it in its box. All three boxes are bagged together and Nancy picks it up with a smile.

"Thank you so much," she says, holding the bag close to her chest.

"It was my pleasure," Julie says, her smile much more genuine than when they'd walked in hours ago. Nancy heard the total earlier. If Julie works on commission, her happiness is warranted. "Have a wonderful day."

"We will," Steve says, holding Nancy close to his side. She holds onto Jonathan's arm as Steve leads her out, throwing a quick, "Thank you," over his shoulder as they head out of the building.

As much as she wants to tear open the bag and put the rings on right away, Nancy keeps it tucked to her chest. Steve opens the door for her and then for Jonathan who _looks_ at him in the way that Nancy knows means he would be kissing Steve if they could get away with it. Steve's ears go pink like they usually do when he's on the receiving end of that very look. He hurries to shut the door and rounds to his seat, turning to them both with a wide grin.

"So?"

Jonathan leans forward, arm resting on the top of the seats between her and Steve. He looks between them, hesitating when he opens his mouth to speak. Nancy makes herself wait because he doesn't look _worried_ so much as unsure. "I have an idea."

She meets Steve's eyes before looking back at Jonathan. "I'm all ears."

"You might not like it," he says but his face is still relaxed like he doesn't mind if they don't agree.

Steve looks out the windows. There aren't very many people around. No one is parked near them. Nancy isn't surprised when he curls his hand around Jonathan's wrist with a smile. "Try us."

Lips stretching into a slow smile, Jonatha looks between them again and Nancy already knows she's going to agree to whatever his plan is.

* * *

Steve pulls over, parking on the side of the road just outside of the _Welcome to Hawkins_ sign. Nancy, bag in hand, gets out of the car. Her legs welcome the chance to stretch out again. Not that they're finally here, she finds she's looking forward to coming home. The trees aren't as bright or lovely as the ones surrounding their cabin, but after weeks away they don't look as ugly as they did before. The next month before they move doesn't feel like such a long wait now that she's had the chance to get away from Hawkins.

"Ready?" Steve asks, tucking her close under his arm. His nose tickles her head when he buries his face in her hair. 

"Very," she says, reaching for Jonathan when he's close. He takes her hand and presses a kiss to her palm before twining their fingers together.

"We didn't have to wait," he says. He probably feels the way she is practically vibrating in her excitement. She can't help it. They're finally here, finally doing this. "We could have done this in the parking lot earlier."

Nancy shakes her head. "This is perfect."

The drive felt that much longer, waiting to get here before they did this. She could have been happy anywhere but if they couldn't exchange rings in their clearing or the cabin, what better place than just outside of their hometown?

Steve nods, tapping the top of Jonathan's arm with his fist. "It was a good idea."

Silly as it is, all three of them feel like passing that road sign before they've done it is just asking for something to go wrong. Just outside of town, close to home but where monsters haven't actually ventured feels right. 

Nancy takes her hand back, pulling away from Steve's side to open the bag and pull out the boxes. They spent half of the drive deciding how to do this and Nancy is more than ready to start. She lets the bag fall to the ground—they can pick it up before they leave—and hands them each a box.

Steve goes first, removing Nancy's ring with shaking fingers. When she holds out her hand, his smile is as bright as it was when they'd been standing just like this, flowers on their heads in their clearing. Her heart is pounding when he holds her hand in his. The ring fits perfectly but she can hardly see it with the way her eyes have misted over. Steve squeezes her fingers, pressing a kiss over the band.

"I love you," he says, voice strained. His eyes are wet, too, and he looks at her like he can't believe any of this is real. She understands. It feels like a dream to her, too.

"I love you, too," she says and the words come as easy as breathing. There was a time when the words might have caught in her throat or felt wrong but not now. Not when her chest is full to bursting a third of the way through this. Not when Steve's eyes are shining in the sunlight. Not with Jonathan watching them, his hand resting on her back.

Nancy goes up on her toes and kisses Steve. Her cheeks are a little wet when she pulls back and she wipes at them. With a sniff, she grins and waves the box in her free hand playfully.

"My turn!"

They both laugh. Steve shakes his head and kisses hers before letting her go. Jonathan's hand slides from her back when she turns to face him. She feels Steve's replace it and fondness wells up inside of her. How is she so lucky to have both of them in her life?

Despite Hawkins being mere feet away, Jonathan's face is as free of worry lines as it was their entire trip. He's not quite smiling, not the way she is, but he's happy. His hand is warm when she holds it in hers. The resized ring is perfect, fitting snugly on his finger. Nancy looks at it, the copper against his skin, and understands the urge Steve must have felt when the need to kiss Jonathan's hand and feel the warming metal of the ring's band against her lips surges through her. Holding his gaze, she does. 

He grips her hand tight, cupping her cheek with the other. More tears are swept away with his thumb and Nancy doesn't care that she's crying because she's as happy as she's been the last three weeks. She's going to hold onto this moment, this feeling, for as long as she can.

She takes his hand from her cheek, running her fingertips against his—their—scar. "I love you," she says, letting him turn her hand over to do the same.

"I love you, too." His voice comes out almost a whisper, choked with emotion. She's heard him like that so many times but this isn't because he's afraid or hurt and it makes all the difference in the world.

Steve's face is soft and awed as he watches them. His cheeks are dry despite the wetness of his eyes. It only takes Jonathan bringing out the last ring and holding out his hand for Steve fo him to lose what was no doubt a battle to keep from crying.

"Shit, sorry," he laughs, swiping roughly over his face.

Jonathan shakes his head, cheeks shiny from his own tears. "What, like we're any better?"

"I guess not," Steve says with a sniff. He palms Jonathan's cheek, running the edge of his thumb under a watery eye. Jonathan leans into Steve's hand. She doesn't know how long they stand there looking into each other's eyes. This moment right now is special. It's important for all three of them, of course. There's a reason she can't stop crying or smiling or thumbing the ring on her finger.

She knows eventually she's going to get to do the whole thing for real with one of them. Maybe both if—like she's only thought to herself for now—they are okay with a divorce, years after her official wedding, so they each get to have a real, legal marriage. But that isn't an option for the two of them. They can't hold hands—hell, they can't stand too _close_ , especially at home where everyone knows them, _just in case_ someone realizes how they feel about each other.

Jonathan holding Steve's hand in his, sliding the wide band on his finger without taking his eyes off of him? This is the only chance he'll have to do it, to have it mean this much.

Nancy watches them, fists pressed into her chest to keep from breaking the moment.

Jonathan sweeps his thumb across the back of Steve's hand. He brings it up to rest palm down on his chest. Steve steps closer and doesn't stumble even though he hasn't looked away from Jonathan once.

"I love you," Jonathan says. The tips of Steve's fingers curl in, wrinkling the fabric of Jonathan's shirt. His mouth wavers when he smiles. Jonathan lifts Steve's hand and kisses just over the ring. Steve barely gives him the chance to straighten up before he grips Jonathan's shirt and pulls him close, cupping his face and kissing him like he'll die if he doesn't.

Their kiss breaks off into smaller ones until they're standing with their foreheads resting together. Steve reaches out, wrapping his arm around her so that she's caught between them. Snuggling closer, she decides that's perfectly alright with her. There's nowhere else she would rather be than right here.

"Seriously," Steve whispers, holding them both tighter. "Best. Vacation. Ever."

Nancy smothers her laugh in Jonathan's arm.

"Yeah," Jonathan says, light and happy and exactly how Nancy always wants him to sound. "It was."

They stand on the side of the road until they hear the distant sound of a car. She can't tell which direction it's coming from. It gives them the motivation they need to separate, reluctant as they are, and head back to the car.

Nancy buckles in but sits sideways so that she can see both of them. Their faces aren't so splotchy with color anymore but they're all going to have to scrub away some tear streaks before they let their parents see. She's happy to wait and watch them first.

Steve grins at her from the driver's seat. He reaches out his hand, the one with his ring, and takes hers. Jonathan leans forward over the seats and joins his hand with theirs, squeezing them with a breathless laugh before letting go and sitting back again.

They turn back onto the road, passing the _Welcome to Hawkins_ sign and Nancy smiles.

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos and comments are much appreciated <3


End file.
